When Opportunity Strikes
by OfMusicandMayhem
Summary: As a young girl, I always liked stories about heroes, but it was at the age of sixteen when I realized I was one of them. And now, as my own adventures begin, I can only hope that I'll live to see them through.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

**Note: This chapter has been edited slightly from its original version as I felt it was necessary. The same goes for chapter four. A writer is their own worst critic, and perhaps - if I have the time - I may edit this whole story. Should that happen, I will leave a note in my profile. But until then, enjoy the story!**

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When Opportunity Strikes – 01 – Into the Fire

You know those times when your mind tells you to do one thing and your mom tells you to do something else? I was having one of those moments. Of course, when you get in that position, there really is only one safe option to go with: mom. So instead of going to the haunted house up at Waverly Hills, I was stuck at work. It was Halloween for crying out loud!

So, here I was, waiting for the customers I knew would never come. At least I had Penny to talk to.

"Jade, do you think you could cover me while I'm gone?" Whoops! Scratch that.

"Sure, just get back soon, I don't want to be left with Top Hat all night." Who's Top Hat? He's my boss. You see, we all call him that because of his collection of said head-wear on the back shelf of the restaurant. Personally, I think that's the reason we don't have any customers. But that isn't the point – the point is that he's a complete idiot who never stops talking, thinks he's always right, and constantly orders people around.

"Don't worry! I'll be back before you know it!" Penny is a good person, and her heart is always in the right place, but she has absolutely no sense of time.

So, here I was, waiting for the customers I knew would never –

_DING!_

"Hello, sir! I'm Jade and I'll be your waitress for this evening. Would you like a table or a booth?"

"Sorry, but I'm not here to eat. I'm here to see Taylor MacLeod." _Dammit_.

"Sure! Top – Taylor is in the back." As I watched the guy walk toward the back, my ADHD kicked in. Top Hat would be busy. He wouldn't be able to watch my every move.

_I could just walk out and still make it to the Haunted House_, I thought. _He wouldn't notice until it was too late!_Course, Voice-of-Reason just_had_ to butt in. _But if I go, I could lose my job, not to mention mom would kill me._ There was only one problem with Voice-of-Reason…she was too damn quiet. Naturally, my impulsiveness took advantage of that and out the door I went.

XxXxX

I just had to leave didn't I? My thoughts were filled with what I would see at the old building and who I would run into. Kids were just returning home from trick-or-treating so I didn't notice until it was too late that I was being followed. So I was scared to death when I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Hey, J.!" Out of the frying pan…. "You're not heading to the party at Nicole's place are you?" It was _him_, Aaron Michelson.

"Go away, Aaron!" He laughed.

"I just wanted to know where you were going! I was heading to the party, and since you were walking down this street, I thought you were on your way to the mad house." I found it funny that he couldn't tell a Sanitarium from an Asylum, but I guess I should explain this. Four years ago, when I was just getting ready for bed, I saw a weird glowing symbol above my head. It was orange with the sharp end of a sword in it. I don't know what it was or what it meant, but I made the mistake of telling a few people. And they now thought I was crazy.

"Go away, Aaron." I repeated. Thankfully he did – still laughing I might add. I wish I could've said that I went to the Haunted House, got scared a bit, went home, and repeated my normal routine the next day, but it never happened.

Not long after Aaron left, I was being followed again. But this time I knew it.

"J.!" they said. Strange, they sounded just like Aaron. I turned around, thinking someone was trying to prank me or something. But instead of a prankster, I was face-to-face with some kind of large dog or wolf thing. It was red in color and instead of teeth it had a sort of rigid jawbone. Most people would be completely stunned by now, but at the first thought of _Run!_ I was gone in a flash.

Anyone could guess it could keep up with me. But I was well known in school for track-and-field. I could hold my own for a little while. But I was more of a sprinter, not an endurance runner. I had to find a way to get rid of the thing before I ran out of energy. Up ahead was a turn I knew all too well from my numerous bike rides – a sharp turn onto a narrow road with a steep ditch going off the side. I went for it without a second thought. I strained my muscles to go faster toward the ditch and at the last second I took hold of a nearby telephone pole and swung myself ninety degrees onto the next road, skinning the palms of my hands. I slowed to a halt and turned around.

Unfortunately, I didn't lose the monster. I stared it down, still out of breath, and set myself up to run again, but before I could, it lunged at me, pinning me to the ground under its paw. My ribcage strained and I struggled to breathe. It leaned down to me, sniffing. The red…_thing_ was taking its time, knowing I couldn't escape.

My vision was starting to become blurry, but out of the corner of my eye, I saw three people appear. The monster stopped to growl threateningly at the newcomers, but they didn't seem frightened. Instead, they pointed something at it and the monster charged them. But before it got near them, they unleashed what looked like a volley of arrows at it. The monster disintegrated in front of my eyes – golden dust flew toward the group harmlessly. I wanted to thank my rescuers, but the adrenaline that had kept me aware had faded, leaving me exhausted and in pain. There was nothing I could do to keep from blacking out.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

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When Opportunity Strikes – 02 – I Find Out I'm Not Human

The first thing I noticed when I regained consciousness was my stomach growling. Yeah, that was probably a bit anti-climactic. Anyways, after I noticed my need for food, I noticed I wasn't in Louisville anymore. It was too cold for this time of year. Then I remembered my previous encounter with a humongous monster and I was wide awake. Maybe I should've been more worried about why I was wherever I was, but I never really was good at prioritizing. There was a hand mirror lying nearby. I don't know what I expected, but at least I was still me. Same green eyes, same brown hair.

Now it was time to worry about where I was. I could tell I was in some sort of tent. I was the only person in here though. There were a few cots around the area and what looked like some medicine was in a corner. This was probably a make-shift medical ward. I noticed my hands had been bandaged and the pain from being almost crushed to death was gone, which added to that theory.

I looked to the end of the cot that I was on and saw my jacket, the backpack that held my spare clothes (always a good idea to have to have when you work in a restaurant) and the costume I planned to wear to a party. My shoes were next to me on the rug. The rugs, by the way, were about the only things besides my other belongings and the medicine that actually had color. Everything else was silver. By that time, my sense of smell decided to start working. My stomach started growling again. Once I gathered all my belongings I started searching for the food.

I was glad I put my jacket on, because it was chillier than I first thought. All around me were more silver tents. A few girls were coming in and out of them or hanging around and talking to each other. They all wore silver jackets or at least had one nearby. As I passed, following the scent of food, some of them stopped to look at me. Some looks were curious, some just seemed happy to see me. Then one came up to me. She was a little younger than me maybe and had the jacket like everyone else did, but she also had a circlet on her head which made me think that she was someone in charge.

"So you're finally awake! Good. At least we don't have to _carry_ you through any more states." So I was right, we weren't in Kentucky.

"Um…do you know where I can get something to eat?" She laughed.

"You wake up in camp around people you don't know, right after being attacked by a Leucrocota no less, and all you care about is that you're hungry?" I figured that the Leucrocota was the monster that attacked me. She continued to laugh as I started following my nose again. "Alright! Come on! I'll show you where the food is."

She led me around the camp site and I jumped when I saw wolves along the edges. No one else seemed bothered by them, though, so I calmed down a bit. I don't know when I first realized it, but I never saw any adults. There weren't any boys either. It was strange. I finally got some food and chowed down, not caring if I got any looks.

"So where exactly am I?" I finally asked the girl, who I learned was named Thalia. "And what was that thing that attacked me? You called it a Leucrocota?" She smiled.

"Finally a decent question. Right now we're in Maryland – Elk Neck State Forest to be exact. As for the monster…. Have you ever studied Greek mythology?"

"Only what they teach in school." I admitted.

"Maybe I can explain." A new voice interrupted. The girl was probably around twelve, but I got the feeling that she was much older. I also got the feeling that she was the boss around here. Of course it might've been the fact that all the girls near us were _bowing_ to her. "Your name is Jade Egilhard, correct?"

"Yeah." It was short, sweet, and maybe a little hard around the edges. Before, most girls seemed like they wanted to strike up a friendly conversation, but now they looked like they wanted to pulverize me. She made a motion for me to follow her. She led me to the largest tent in the camp. It was highly decorated and warm, and it was nice to be out of the cold.

"So what does Greek mythology have to do with that monster?" I continued once I got comfortable. "And who are you?"

"The Leucrocota is a monster from those legends," I noticed she called it a legend instead of a myth, "and I am Artemis, goddess of the hunt." I must've been staring at her like she was crazy. She seemed familiar with the expression though. Of course, I was familiar with it, too. But she was claiming to be a Greek goddess! Part of me wondered whether my mind was having one of those weird dreams again. She continued, "I know it may seem outrageous to you, but it's true. How else could you explain some of the things that have happened to you?"

She had a point. The monster, the weird symbol, Aaron Michelson…they all were strange occurrences. Well, maybe not Aaron, but now I had an excuse. I still didn't get how this girl was a goddess, but it would explain why there were no boys. I wasn't an idiot – I did a report on her for school.

"What do _I_ have to do with all of this?" I asked. She smiled warmly.

"You, my dear, are a demigod. It's what we call the children of a mortal parent and an immortal one. A more common term is half-blood."_ Great. So now I'm not even human._

"So how is it possible that you're even alive?" It was a fair question.

"I _am_ immortal. We don't die, we just move. We follow the strongest power of western culture. It was once Greece. Now it is America."

"So if I'm a half-blood, then who is my immortal parent?"

"Good question. You were claimed right?"

"Do you mean that weird symbol? The one that appeared over my head a few years ago?"

"Yes. What did it look like?" I thought for a moment.

"It was the sharp end of a sword on an orange circle." She seemed thoughtful, trying to determine which god's symbol it was, I guessed.

"I believe that means your father is Caerus. He's the god of opportunity – a minor god, but still one to be reckoned with."

"So what now? Do I just go home and pretend this never happened?" You may be wondering how I'm able to take this so easily. The answer is 'I don't know'. But I've always been open minded, I figure now's not any different.

"You could. But it's not your only choice." She said, "You could also join my hunters and me." I was sure that wasn't the only other choice. After all, there're most likely boy demigods, too. They must have a place to go.

"What about door number three?"

"Well, there is a camp in New York. You could meet other half-bloods, train to become a hero." Honestly, I just wanted to go home. But my curiosity got the better of me.

"I'd…like to go to this camp." I said slowly. She seemed somewhat disappointed, but not all that surprised.

"Then I will ask a hunter to see you safely there."

After a good night's sleep, I was on my way.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

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When Opportunity Strikes – 03 – The Camp and I Get Acquainted

One of Artemis' hunters, Rita, was the one who helped me get to camp. She reminded me of Penny: talkative, heart-of-gold, no sense of time. I was told that we'd get there quickly, but it took much longer than planned. She went on and on about how wonderful it was with the hunters and all the adventures she's had. I mostly tuned her out. Not many people have the ability to do that and still seem like they're paying attention. There were a few things I listened to though – like the fact that she was actually around thirty years old. I was thankful we got to stop in a few hotels, so I wasn't dirty and smelly and tired when we got to camp.

Now, I've been to a summer camp before. But this was like a completely different world! Standing at the top of the hill I could see everything. The camp was beautiful. There were at least a hundred cabins, each with a different theme. I could see an archery range – which wasn't that uncommon, but in an arena nearby, kids were sword-fighting with each other! Another strange thing was that kids were flying overhead on pegasi! I didn't have a chance to look at everything else very clearly, because Rita was leading me to a large building where a man and a…centaur…were sitting. They noticed us rather quickly.

I have to admit, I didn't really pay much attention to what they were saying exactly. I was too busy trying to get over the fact that those girls _weren't_ playing some trick on me. I did catch a few things though. Like the fact that the centaur was Chiron. I also heard Rita tell him about my run-in with the Leucocrota, and my short stay with the hunters. He agreed with Artemis that I was a child of Caerus. The other guy seemed pretty bored with the whole thing. I never caught his name then, but I learned quickly that he was Dionysus from the orientation film. I decided to stay clear of him for now – he didn't seem too friendly.

Rita left during the film so I got the grand tour from Chiron. It was mind boggling! How could all of this hide from the world for so long? Then for the first time I saw my new cabin. It was simple in design except for a few decorative carvings in the wood. The cabin was orange in color – not too bright. The porch was brown, but I guessed it had gold in its paint, because it shimmered in the setting sun. It was beautiful, warm, home-y.

Home. It had been – what? – five or six days since I left work. Mom and the rest were probably worried sick! Penny would have sent out a search party the minute I didn't answer the phone. I already figured I was fired. Top Hat didn't care if you were kidnapped or just running late – if you weren't going show up and didn't let him know first, you were out of a job. I didn't have too long to worry about that because I was soon mowed down by a blur of orange.

A girl about seven years old had given me a flying hug. Her red hair was down to her waist and she had a huge smile on her face. She was wearing the camp t-shirt I had seen on a few others under a thin, red jacket. A bronze sword hung at her side – _who gives a sword to a seven-year-old? _– and she was showering me with a million questions every second.

"Lucy," Said a boy, coming up behind her, "Let the poor girl up. I bet her day's been hard enough without you tackling her. Besides, she can't answer your questions if you talk over her." He smiled at me and offered his hand. "My name's Kyle. The little gnat is Lucy." I took his hand as the girl got up to argue with him. He ignored her like he was used to it by now.

"Thanks. I'm Jade."

"Kyle, can you and Lucy can help Jade get settled?" Chiron asked. "I need to get back to the Big House."

"Sure thing, Chiron!" Lucy seemed to get over being called a gnat and was smiling again. She started dragging me toward the cabin excitedly. Unfortunately she also started spouting out questions again.

The inside of the cabin may not have been as nice as the outside, but it still seemed comfortable just looking at it. The walls were plain beige. There was one window to each wall, each had white curtains. The floors were wood, but there was a round, white rug in the center of the cabin. Bunks lined the walls, a wooden trunk at end of each, but only two looked like they had been used. I guessed they belonged to Kyle and Lucy.

It had just dawned on me that they were children of Caerus, too. I had real, flesh-and-blood siblings. Sure, I had three brothers at home, but they were all adopted like me. I started to wonder if my real mother ever knew I was part of the world of demigods. If so, would she have told me? Sent me here?

"So which one do you want?" Lucy asked, bringing me out of my thoughts. I assumed she meant which bunk I wanted, so I picked the first one I saw and tossed my backpack and purse onto it. Suddenly, a horn sounded.

Kyle spoke up. "It's time for dinner. C'mon Jade, we'll explain things on the way."

XxXxX

I hadn't been here long and I was already starting to love this place. The customs weren't hard to get used to, I could hold my own against the Apollo kids at archery (as much as possible anyway), the climbing wall was pretty fun if you got to the top in time, and you could beat up an Ares kid and only get a few extra chores to do! By the time summer officially rolled around and the other campers started arriving, I was just like everyone else.

It was a slow day. The returning campers were meeting up with their brothers, sisters, and friends. Any newcomers were being shown around, so there weren't any real camp activities today. So, I decided to hang around the cabin area and gossip with some girls I've come to trust. They were telling me about some of the older campers that passed us by.

"That's Helen Derrent, daughter of Aphrodite. I'd be careful around her unless you want to end up as her personal Barbie Doll. Oh! There's Mike! He's awesome. And that's –"

"Who's he?" I interrupted, looking pointedly at a simply _handsome_ guy. The girls 'ooh-ed' and giggled.

"That's Grant Nelsen," One of them said. "He's a son of Bia, goddess of force. Nice pick, Jade!" I blushed as I realized I was staring at him. I couldn't help it! He had dusty-blond hair and hazel eyes. He wore jeans and a dark blue t-shirt. His backpack was slung over one shoulder as he walked. He was laughing with a few other guys, but I didn't really check to see if I knew them. Luckily, the girls moved on to another subject.

After a while I got tired of the gossiping and decided to practice at the arena. I was glad there was no one else there – I wasn't very good when it came to swordplay. Even _Lucy_ could fight with one better than I could! It was too heavy in my hands. But whining about it wasn't going to help. I needed as much practice as I could get.

Luckily or unluckily my desperate training was interrupted by none other than my little sister.

"Hey, Jade!" She looked surprised to see me here. That ever-present smile was even brighter than usual. I couldn't help but smile back.

"Lucy. What's up?" I knew better than to believe that innocent surprise look. She was never surprised, so I figured she was either about to ask or point out something extremely embarrassing or blackmail me (don't ask).

"Nothing much, just wanted to practice a new move I thought of." I went back to practicing and she joined in. "So, I saw you looking at Grant Nelsen earlier."

"Observant aren't you?" My voice could give a piccolo run for its money.

"You like him." She sang. And now my face could give the Ares cabin a run for its money.

"Not. A. Word." I threatened. She continued to smile as if she knew I couldn't do anything even if she told the world. She was right. I wouldn't do anything.

"He asked me about you." That caught me off guard. As far as I knew I was completely invisible to him.

"What did he ask? What did you say?"

"He just wanted to know what your name was and if you were new to camp. I told him the truth." Lucy was a pain sometimes but she never lied. I had to say I was disappointed he didn't ask more. She never said anything else after that.


	4. Chapter 4

**Note: This chapter has been re-written slightly. I felt this was necessary since part of the first incarnation seemed slightly far-fetched. If you remember the first incarnation of this chapter, I ask that you let me know if this is better or worse than it. Thank you!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

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When Opportunity Strikes – 04 – I Meet a Camp Celebrity

Nightfall had come around a few hours ago and the grounds were deserted. So I made my way carefully toward where some kids from the Hermes cabin were waiting. I was going to help them pull off a prank against the other campers tonight. I know! I know! It was against camp rules to be out this time of night, but it was against my nature to leave a favor unreturned. I had made a deal with the Hermes cabin that if they supplied me with some necessities – like clothes, toiletries, and a bag of Jolly Ranchers – then I would help them with whatever they wanted. But that's not the point.

The point is what happened _after_ I broke some rules. I was on my way back to the cabin, being careful not to be caught. Apparently, I either wasn't careful enough or he was just good at sneaking up on people. By the time I realized he was there I already had a sword at my throat. The first thing I made out was the sword – it was impossibly black and freezing cold. I tried to see him next but he blended perfectly into the shadows. That was okay, I didn't need to see him to know who he was. The girls had pointed him out earlier that day.

This was Nico di Angelo, son of Hades – one of the heroes who saved Olympus in the recent war. I didn't know if it was the sword or the fact I was seeing the camp's VIP that left me speechless. I was staring down the end of the blade for a few seconds more before he lowered it.

"Sorry," he said, "I thought you were a monster." Guess I deserved that. I _was_ lurking around the tree-line, trying to make myself invisible. "What are you doing out here?"

"Umm…long story." I said, hoping he wouldn't try to behead me again. "What are _you _doing out?" _Bad idea, Jade! He's a cabin counselor! Don't give him another reason to put you in the line of fire._

He didn't seem offended, thankfully. He shrugged, "I was practicing."

"On the monsters in the forest?" I asked, "At this time of night?"

"Yeah. You better get back to your cabin before you get caught by the harpies."

"You're not going to turn me in?"

"Of course not, then I'd have to explain why I was out." Made sense to me. I sighed in relief and he seemed to laugh at that. It was easier to see him now, but whether that was because he was calmer or the fact that the sky was just beginning to get lighter behind him I didn't know. After a quick glance I figured it was time to go and get as much sleep as I could. So after a quick 'thanks', I started rushing back to the bed that was practically calling my name.

XxXxX

The next day would've been bearable if a) I had gotten enough sleep and b) all hell didn't try to kill me. My cabin always had the arena first thing after breakfast. We usually went with the Ares cabin (which was bad enough) but this time we got a new cabin thrown into the picture. Any guesses on which it was? That's right, the Hades cabin. Granted it was only Nico, but we were the only ones without a sparring partner, so we got paired up. Guess I had to pay for being out past curfew after all!

It was brutal! I swear he knocked me halfway across the arena once or twice and that was no easy task. It might've been better if I had a bow and arrows instead of a sword but even then I barely got a break. By the end of the class I was ready to just lay there and not get up the rest of the day. I was able to put mind over matter however, and somehow struggled to my feet.

"You're terrible." He said, coming up to me.

"Thanks for being so blunt about it." I remarked sarcastically. He looked thoughtful.

"You look like you rely more on agility than strength or power," He walked over to a rack of weapons and pulled out something a little smaller than the sword I was using, "Here, catch."

I caught it effortlessly. It was a little more than a foot long and curved. My first instinct was to hold it curved-side-down. It could've fit in my hand a little easier, but it was much better than the bulky sword I was using earlier. Out of nowhere, Nico attacked. I was able to block, but I still stumbled back by the blow. I was proud of myself for at least remaining on my feet.

He nodded, "Better. It's a Sica. You should ask one of the Hephaestus campers to make one for you. I think Cassidy Bryant from the Bia cabin uses one, maybe you could ask her for lessons, too."

"Jade!" I turned and saw Kyle. He and Lucy were standing at the arena's exit, waiting for me. I turned back to Nico.

"Thanks again." He waved it off. I followed him out of the arena.

As he walked on, Kyle asked me, "How are you feeling?"

"Ow."


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

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When Opportunity Strikes – 05 – Felled by the Guy I'm Falling For

Instead of going to the arena every day, Cassidy Bryant and I started meeting up in quiet areas where she could teach me without distraction. Today it was on a hill overlooking the armory. She was a good teacher. She didn't try to rush me or push me too far past my limits. I was learning at a good pace.

"Try to get the dagger _around_ the shield." I tried to do as she said, but she parried with a sword. She tried to stab me, I blocked. We kept going back and forth, but I could tell she was going easy on me. It would've been better if I used a dagger made especially for me, but the Hephaestus cabin said it wouldn't be done until tomorrow. Friday. Capture-the-Flag day. I could only hope I could learn to defend myself better by then.

Don't ask me how it happened, I don't have an answer – but right as she made to hit me with the pommel of her sword, everything just seemed to freeze! Except for my mind. Suddenly, I could tell you every move I could have made to counter her attack. Apparently I didn't get long to decide which I wanted though because time started up again and I forgot to block, so I got hit a little harder than I wanted to.

"Jade! Are you okay? Why didn't you block?" It looked like she was torn between worry and frustration. I hoped it was the former.

"What just happened?" I asked, winded. I was sprawled out on the ground.

"You mean besides the fact that you just stood there like an idiot! I _know _you can do better than that!" Guess it was the latter.

I sat up. "No! I mean…time just seemed to stop for a second. How did that happen?" She seemed confused. Was I the only one that noticed? She opened her mouth to say something. Probably 'Are you crazy?' But then someone called her name.

"Cass! Chiron wants to see you." I turned around and…_Oh my gods, it's _him_! _Grant Nelsen.

"Alright. Hey, see if she needs medical attention?" Cassidy motioned to me.

"Sure." He came up to me as she jogged away. He knelt down and started examining me. Whether he saw me blushing or not, I didn't know. "Did you hit your head?" He asked.

"No, Cassidy did."

He grinned. "Yeah, she does that. I'd say you're fine. Nothing more than a few scrapes and bruises."

"Good to hear." He got up and offered me his hand. Naturally, I took it. I was a little unsteady, but I righted myself. He frowned.

"You should rest a bit. You look like you're about to pass out," He was right. I was tired and probably looked like crap. "I'll walk you to your cabin in case you do."

"You don't have to do that!"

"It's fine. I was on my way to the stables. I'd have to pass the cabins anyway."

"Thanks," I said. "So, how long have you been at camp?" I asked as we started walking.

"I've been here every summer for the past five years. I'm surprised nothing has gone wrong in the past four."

"Well, don't jinx it!"

He smiled, "You're one of the newer campers. Jade, right?"

"Yeah."

"Where are you from?"

"Louisville, Kentucky. You?"

"Detroit. Kentucky got hit pretty hard four years ago, how's it going in the rebuilding process?" A few weeks ago I learned that the freak storm that came through my hometown four summers ago was actually Typhon, father of monsters. I wasn't surprised to hear it. I swore up and down to my foster parents that I saw a giant foot cross the Ohio River. They didn't believe me, of course, and tried to convince me otherwise, but I knew better.

"It's coming along. Slowly, but at a good pace. The 4H club is helping out all over the place. Mostly at the fairgrounds and we've just finished at the Waterfront."

"You're part of the group? I thought 4H was just about agriculture."

"Agriculture is only part of it. We're about hands-on learning. But that's not the point – most of the damage has been fixed, only a few buildings in metro left to go."

"Good to hear. How's the Iceland Sports Complex? I have a score to settle with a friend there."

"Ah, you like ice hockey."

"Do you?"

"Not a big fan of most sports…until the Cards face off against the Wildcats – then my TV's set to the highest volume. But I don't know for sure about the arena. It's in the St. Matthew's area, right? Then yeah, it's probably fixed by now. The area was one of the first addressed."

"You don't like sports? Are you crazy?"

"I said 'most sports'. For your information, I compete in many BMX competitions and I used to do track-and-field at school. I'm not bad at poker either."

"Poker isn't a sport." He said firmly, but with amusement.

"Yeah it is!" I said, just as amused.

"No. It isn't."

"Then why is it on the sports channel?"

He laughed, "Good point. So how did your family take to you coming to camp?"

"I don't know." He seemed to realize I didn't want to talk about it, thank the gods. So we continued on in silence.

XxXxX

I wanted to sleep in today, pretend I was sick, something, anything, to get out of Capture-the-Flag. But it just wasn't my day. The only highlight of the day was getting my new dagger. I was so excited about it that I actually raced to last-minute practice before dinner. Which ended up a nightmare since Cassidy was even harder on me than yesterday. But she had to be. I was ten times better with this dagger than the other one.

The Sica was made of celestial bronze of course. It was sixteen inches long and was balanced just right for me. The grip was wrapped in leather. It came with a scabbard made of wood which was carved on both sides. One side I translated as 'the good (or wise) lad knows of an alternate path'. And on the other: 'When you hear of many cherries, hold a small basket' (or, be cautious and don't get overwhelmed). Other than that, the scabbard was just like any other. All throughout dinner I was admiring its craftsmanship. I made sure to thank Hephaestus as well as my father when I tossed the food into the fire.

All too soon, it was time for Capture-the-Flag. Kyle, Lucy, and I got put on the side led by the Ares cabin and none of us were too happy about that, but we swallowed our pride.

Just because I didn't like Capture-the-Flag day, didn't mean I wasn't good at it. In fact, I had proven myself over and over to be a valuable part of the team. I was just nervous because of all the new campers. I took my usual position with some of the Apollo campers in the trees about a quarter of a mile from the base while others patrolled the ground. It was our job to shoot at anyone who came near or tried to get past. About ten minutes into the game, we first started getting enemies. They were pretty easy to take down, until they started coming in larger groups. It started taking a lot of our focus from the other areas of defense, and I was sure they knew that. So, I decided to patrol around the weaker areas, going from branch to branch like a monkey.

I found one. He was alone, and had his back to me, his focus was somewhere else. I decided it would be easy to take him down. Quietly…so very, _very_ quietly I made my way a little closer so I could get a clear shot. I aimed and fired, only to have him deflect it in the blink of an eye! He threw some sort of knife at me and as I made to dodge, I fell out of the tree. Thankfully, I landed on my feet, but just as soon as I did that, I was blocking his sword with my dagger. It was only then that I saw his face.

"Grant!" I exclaimed. His face lit up in surprise. Our surprise didn't last long, we were on opposite sides after all. Seeing as he had five years of training and I had only a few months of it, I was pretty proud of myself for holding out as well as I did. He was stronger – every time our weapons met, my whole arm jarred. His only weakness was that he fought slowly, and I exploited it. I tried to maneuver behind him, but he seemed to know that trick. He was able to counter it and hit me pretty hard at the same time. I was dazed for only a second, but it gave him the advantage. With one final hit with his shield, I was out cold.

XxXxX

I woke up once, heard someone make a quick apology to me, and then went back to sleep. This time, though, it wasn't dreamless. I was standing somewhere cold (though, I didn't know how I could feel it in a dream) and dark near a river. Or what was left of one. The trench was large, deep, and muddy like the water had just been drained.

Soon I realized I wasn't standing there alone. There was a young woman beside me. She wore jeans, black combat boots, and a black, military-style trench coat. Short, black hair that went down to her chin covered her pale skin. Her eyes were hazel. She was looking straight at me.

"Jade, I need your help. I need you to and your friends to help restore my river. The consequences otherwise would be devastating." Her voice was firm, but I could hear weakness behind it.

"Wait, I don't even know what happened, let alone how to save it! I don't even know who you are! And which friends?" I was angry now. What authority did she have to demand this of me?

"There is no time to explain at the moment. I grow weaker by the second. All I can tell you is that you must look for the one who brings ruin." I was about to ask 'why?' but then I woke up.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

* * *

When Opportunity Strikes – 06 – I Get Stuck in the Middle of Everything

"About time. You missed the celebration." It was Kyle. He looked relieved.

"Damn. I was really looking forward to it, too." I must've slept for a while, but I still felt beat. I just wanted to go to my own bunk and spend the rest of the day there. Before I got the chance to do that though, something in Kyle's eyes that I didn't see at first caught my attention. "What is it, Ky? You look worried."

"Other than the fact that Lucy seemed like she would cut off your oxygen, you looked like you had a bad dream." I just noticed that I was being pinned down by someone. Lucy must've fallen asleep while reaching over me. It was the only explanation for the way she was laying face down across my stomach with her arms above her head hanging off one edge and her feet dangling off the other. I was torn between laughing at the situation, and wondering how she could sleep like that.

"Um, yeah. I had a dream, but it was more weird than anything."

"Can you tell me what it was about?"

"Some woman asking for my help." He pursed his lips.

"You should tell Chiron. Demigod dreams aren't always_ just_ dreams." So I've been told. But I didn't expect to have one, especially since I'm brand new here. So I had another stop on the way to my cabin.

XxXxX

I found Chiron near the stables (unusual for him), trying to break up an argument. I didn't notice until later that it was Nico and someone else I didn't recognize. I only caught that he was trying to leave the camp somehow. Chiron looked like he wanted an excuse to do something else than listen to them fight each other, so I gave it to him.

"Jade!" He said with an undertone of relief, "You're awake! Did you need something?"

"Kyle told me to find you. Ask you about some weird dream I had." He became alert instantly.

"Of course. Let's go somewhere a little more private." We didn't go far. I assumed that was because he wanted the other campers in his sight. "So tell me. What was the dream?"

I explained all that I could remember about it. He lowered his head as if deep in thought. "I honestly don't know what to make of it. It's very vague. There are many rivers, but none that have run dry, as far as I know. As to finding the one who brings ruin…that could be Ate, the goddess of ruin. But it would be hard to find her. She never stays in one place for more than a moment."

"So you don't think it's just something my imagination came up with as a joke?"

"I don't like to take dreams for granted – especially ones with a warning."

XxXxX

It wasn't too long after I left that Nico had caught up to me.

"You looked like you were in a bit of trouble – something about leaving the camp? Even I know that's not allowed until school starts." He looked a bit annoyed that I opened with that. He also looked…_worried?_ – which made me worry because this was a guy who literally stared death in the face.

"I need you to tell me more about your dream. It's impor–"

"'_More_'? You eavesdropped?" He gave me a look that meant drop-it-and-give-me-an-answer-or-else. I didn't argue after that. "I already told Chiron what I knew."

"Then tell me that again. Word for word."

"The woman in my dream said she needed my help. That she needed me and my friends to help restore her river, otherwise some bad stuff would happen. She said she couldn't explain everything at the moment, but that she was getting weaker and that I need to find 'the one who brings ruin'. That's all she told me." He looked like I just told him he would be doing every camper's chores for a month. I'll admit that would be pretty bad. "What is it? Do you know what my dream could mean?"

"I'm not…exactly sure." He said slowly.

"Hey. I told you my dream – one that you had already eavesdropped on by the way – so I think I deserve to hear what you think about it." He nodded.

"You're right." He sighed. "Being a son of Hades I have an ability to teleport from one place to another by using shadows, including to the underworld."

"Handy. Was that where you were trying to go when you got caught?"

"Yeah. The only problem was that I couldn't get there."

"And that means…?"

"That either my father doesn't want me there, or something's separating the underworld from the mortal world. I may have thought that something bad happened and he locked the place down, but I would've sensed that."

"So what does this have to do with my dream?"

"You've probably heard of the river Styx." I nodded. "Well, no one can get in or out, without getting past it first – even Hades." Now I could tell why he was worried. If the Styx _had_ dried up…I couldn't imagine the chaos that would come of it. "But that's just a theory. It's more than likely that my father doesn't want me around at the moment."

"I don't know if I should be hoping that's the case or feeling sorry for you if it is."

XxXxX

When I _finally_ got to my cabin, I was surprised to see Grant of all people outside of it. He straightened up when he saw me so I supposed he wanted to talk to me about something.

"Grant?" I asked when I was in hearing range.

"Jade. I don't know if you heard me earlier, but I'm sorry for knocking you out during the game. That may have been a little harsh." _So that was Grant I heard in the infirmary?_ "Am I forgiven?"

"I forgave you the last time you apologized."

"Thanks." I waved it off. "I didn't know if you'd forgive me so easily or not, so I kind of brought a peace offering." He held up a Dr. Pepper. "It may not be a peace offering any more, but it's still up for grabs." How could I resist? It may not have been my favorite, but it was still a soft drink – a rarity here.

"Thanks, back!" Apparently fate didn't want me to rest.

"Grant!" It was Kyle. "Chiron called a meeting! He wants all the cabin counselors."

"Alright. I'll meet you there." Grant called back. Huh. I didn't know he was a counselor. He ran off toward the Big House without looking back. I turned to go into the cabin, but Kyle stopped me.

"Jade. I want you to sit in, too." I was surprised.

"Is that even allowed?"

"Yep. Come on." The rec-room was packed. A lucky few got seats but unfortunately, I wasn't one of them. That's fine. I had practice at falling asleep standing up. There was one girl there I didn't recognize. She had red, curly hair and green eyes. She looked like she was either in her early twenties or late teens. She had a lot of freckles, too. She was lost in her thoughts, upset about something.

Chiron, who was in his wheel-chair to give us more room, cleared his throat and all of the talking that was going on died. Even Dionysus seemed to pay attention. "You might be wondering why I called you here." He said. "I guess I should get straight to the point. The Oracle has given a prophecy." The mumbling started up again, but ceased as soon as the activities director held up his hand, "Rachel, dear. Would you please recite your prophecy again?"

"Sure." She said. The air seemed to get colder.

"_Ruin has brought a goddess's fall_

_According to plans of a new cabal._

_Fight against brothers without raising a blade,_

_Then face stone warriors in a mountain's shade._

_Destruction must be faced by favor sincere_

_In order to save the one whom gods fear._

_Another decision awaits in turn._

_Three shall go but two shall return._"

The only thing I could think was, _uh-oh_. This was definitely not a good sign. I thought about what Nico had talked about earlier, and I looked to where he was standing. He was looking back. I could tell we were on the same page. Chiron was the first to break the silence in the room.

"The prophecy was unclear as to who was supposed to go, and so we come to the point of this meeting: are there any who would volunteer for this quest? No one would hold it against you should you choose otherwise." At first it was silent, but then someone raised their hand. It was Grant!

"I'll go." I held a new awe for him. I've never seen someone leave for a quest before, but the way some people talked about it, they made it sound like it was pretty dangerous. Not to mention the prophecy made it seem like someone would die. Chiron nodded.

"Then I'll leave it to you to choose two others to help you." The meeting adjourned right after. Everyone except Grant and Chiron left. He seemed lost in thought. I planned to leave with everyone else, but I was stopped by a hand on my shoulder. It was Nico. I could tell he wanted to tell Grant about his theory, and he couldn't do that without my side of the story, too.

"Chiron, Grant. I have good guess as to who the goddess in the prophecy is." He said.

"Then please tell us." The centaur said.

"I think she may be Styx." That got everyone's attention, including mine. But mine was for a different reason.

"Hold on. I though the Styx was just a river." I said. I'll admit, I was pretty confused. Chiron looked at me.

"Yes, the Styx is a river, but all rivers have a river spirit or a naiad who watches over it. Underworld rivers are no different. The only difference between her and most others is that she's a minor goddess, too." He explained. I nodded. It made sense.

"But how do you know it's her, Nico?" Grant asked. Nico looked to me. I'd never had stage fright before, but I figured this was what it was.

"I had a dream about a woman who was standing next to a dried-out river. She said that she needed help. She said to find the one who brings ruin." I told him.

"'_Ruin has brought a goddess's fall_'." He recited.

"I also think it has to do with the fact that I can't get into the underworld." Nico said. "I can't shadow travel there. I've even tried to send an Iris Message, but it didn't get through." It was quiet again. We all knew this had to be the answer. Grant spoke up again.

"Nico. This all happened on your turf, so it must be personal for you. It's only right that you should be on this team." Nico nodded in agreement. Then Grant looked to me.

"You had the dream, Jade. You were chosen for the quest by the goddess herself. I can't really argue with that. Not to mention, you look like the type of person who would learn faster outside camp than in it." I didn't have a choice did I? I didn't think I was ready to jump into a quest without much training. Of course, I wasn't ready to make a goddess angry either. I nodded.

"It's settled then. The three of you should return to your cabins and ready yourselves for your journey. Get some sleep. I'll have Argus drive you to the train station tomorrow morning."

XxXxX

Naturally, even though I was dead tired, I got no sleep what-so-ever. My backpack held just about everything I owned…except for that old Halloween costume, most of my toiletries, and my bag of Jolly Ranchers – the latter of which I gave to Lucy. I was one of the first campers up so I made my way to Half-Blood Hill to wait. The only others on the hill were the dragon and Argus…who seemed to be quite focused on me.

"Do you want to tell me something or are you admiring my obvious beauty?" I joked half-heartedly. He gave a small smile. He signed what looked like 'Did you get any sleep?' "Nope." I took out the coke Grant had given me. I had it in my pocket since he gave it to me. I held it up to him. "You wouldn't tell anyone would you?" He raised an eyebrow.

I popped open the can, but as soon as I did it was snatched out of my hands. It was Peleus! _That damn dragon stole my coke!_ He downed the can whole. I glared at him but he seemed unfazed by it. I wasn't surprised – he could swallow me whole as easily as the can. I looked back at Argus. He seemed to be shaking with quiet laughter. I just sank to the ground to wait for the others.

To pass the time, and get my mind on something else other than the quest, I asked him an obvious question.

"So how did you land yourself this job?" Needless to say, he stared at me like I was an idiot. "What? You're not that unique. My mom has eyes in the back of her head, too!" That's when the boys showed up.

"Lucy told us you already left the cabin. Why are you out here so early?" Grant asked.

"Can't I have a meaningful conversation with a good friend?" Argus rolled all of his many eyes, but he was smiling none-the-less. He waved for us to follow him to the van at the bottom of the hill.

"By the way, Grant…"

"Hm?"

"You owe me a Dr. Pepper."

"I already gave you one."

"The dragon took it. He can't really get me another one, now can he?"


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

* * *

When Opportunity Strikes – 07 – I Play Cards with Monkey-Men

Despite the fact that we were on a mission that may mean the end of one of us, the boys didn't seem worried about it. Grant was excited. We were going to his hometown. Nico slept most of the train ride…or tried to, I should say. I drummed my fingers loudly and constantly – a nervous habit. Even though I knew it was getting on their nerves, they were being pretty kind about it. It was my first quest and they once felt how terrifying it was.

At one point Grant had found a deck of cards someone left behind. Nico had actually fallen asleep, so I decided to show the guy how well I knew my way around a deck. Somewhere between a tie-breaker match of 5-card draw and me blowing him out of the water in Texas Hold Em', he asked me about my family again.

"So, I take it your mother doesn't know about camp?" I was silent for a bit.

"My family probably thinks I'm either dead or kidnapped by now."

"Oh," He seemed sorry he brought it up, "You said you've been in BMX competitions. How good are you?" I was thankful for the change in subject, even if it _was_ obvious.

"Not too bad. I've placed in about fifteen, and came in first about three times. Not all of them were official matches though. My forte is flatland, but I can hold my own on a street course."

"You lost me." I laughed, then winced as my right wrist became limp. The cards flew everywhere.

"Anyone for 52-Pick-Up?" I said nervously. Grant became worried and picked up my hand to examine it. I would've blushed if not for the injury.

"Did you sprain it?" He was in full 'doctor-mode' now, "Has this happened before? What caused it?"

"No, I didn't sprain it, it just gave out. Yes it's happened many times before at random moments or when it's under extreme pressure. I broke my wrist when I was learning to ride a bike, it never healed right. It'll be over in a little bit, I just have to relax it. And you're not helping with the relaxing part."

"Oh, sorry!" He said as he dropped my hand. His concern soon became curiosity, "So, if you're wrist does this all the time, then why do BMX? Or do archery for that matter? Both could easily trigger, it." I'd heard this question before. My doctors, teachers, friends, family, they all asked at some point.

"I see it as a challenge. When it makes things harder, I want to prove I can still do it." He nodded like this made perfect sense.

"I know the feeling. When you can't have something, that's when you want it. I broke my leg once, and all I wanted to do was get up and walk."

We didn't have much of a conversation after that. When my wrist was better, we just picked up the cards, played one more hand and decided to get some rest before we reached Detroit.

XxXxX

I woke up at high noon. I wasn't much of a morning person. In fact the only people I knew who were, were the children of Apollo. I didn't want to get up, but as soon as I was about to fall back to sleep the guy across from me kicked my shin a little. It wasn't enough to hurt, but enough to annoy me.

"Go back to sleep Grant! Wake me up when we get to Detroit." I grumbled.

"We are." I sighed. Reluctantly, I opened my eyes and glared at him. Then I looked to my right and saw that I wasn't the only one who wanted to sleep in. Nico must've found a pillow at some time during the night because he was leaning against one now.

"Wake up!" I yelled as I yanked the pillow from behind his head, then I smacked him with it, "If I have to get up at this hour, so do you!" He groaned and removed the pillow from his face to glare at me.

Thankfully we didn't need a map since Grant knew the city like the back of his hand. We actually decided that since we didn't have much money for another train-ride west, we'd stop at his dad's to get his car. I was jealous that Grant had a car – I either had to walk, ride my bike, or borrow my mom's car when I needed transportation. True, there were city busses, I just didn't trust them all that much. Along the way, he pointed out areas of the city – where the best restaurants were, where you could get the best deals for your money.

Soon enough we arrived at his house. I couldn't help but stare! It was two stories and probably had three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The whole place looked like something out of a postcard. Sure, I guess a bunch of people have these kinds of houses, but it was a dream home for me! My parents' house had two bedrooms and one bathroom. We had to build an extra room in the basement just so me and Hunter (the youngest of my three brothers) could have a place to sleep.

Grant knocked on the door, and I heard a man inside yelling, "Just a minute!" I figured that was his dad. In fact, I was pretty sure that was the case when the man opened the door. He looked almost exactly like Grant. They both had the same color hair, pale skin, they even stood the same way! The only differences I could see between he and Grant was his eyes. Brown eyes that lit up when he saw his son.

"Grant! I thought you'd be at camp! It's a nice surprise. Come in! Come in! Make yourselves at home." He led us to the living room, which was neat and tidy…yet another improvement to my own. Then he turned Nico and I, "And who might you two be?"

"I'm Jade. It's good to meet you Mr. Nelsen." I said as I shook his hand.

"Nico." The boy said simply, also shaking the older man's hand.

"Dad," Grant started, "I need my car."

"Of course," His father replied, "But why exactly?" Grant tried to explain quickly, leaving out certain parts, and soon enough we were treated to the first decent meal we had since we left camp. I excused myself to start cleaning the dishes. I heard him come in, but I didn't really think much of it.

"What are you doing?" Came Evan Nelsen's voice. He seemed amused. "You're my guest, you shouldn't be cleaning the dishes!"

I shrugged, "My mom taught me that the cook doesn't clean. Besides, it keeps me busy."

"At least let me dry them." He didn't even give me a chance to protest. It was silent for a moment, and he looked like he was trying to figure out how to say something.

"Just say it." I told him. I couldn't help get the feeling I was going to regret that.

"Alright. If you say so." He looked at me straight in the eyes, "I noticed you watching my son since you arrived here," I dropped the dish I was holding back into the sink, "Are you two dating?" Yep, instant regret.

"No!" I said quickly. He didn't believe it. "I-I mean…I wish." _This is embarrassing_. He seemed to understand. I wondered where the boys were at this very moment. If they were watching I swear I'd strangle them.

"You should tell him."

"I've only known him for a short time! What –"

"He does." He smiled knowingly. "You may not have noticed, but he was watching you the entire time, too." I blushed more than I ever had in my life. "I may not be the expert on love, but I can tell you two fit together pretty well." I heard someone walking toward the kitchen.

"Jade," Just my luck, "We've already spent too much time here. We need to get going."

"Let me finish up here, Grant." I was sure he could see my red face even though I wasn't facing him. But if he did, he didn't say anything.

XxXxX

It was both a good and a bad idea to leave. Good because we weren't putting his father in danger and drawing unnecessary attention to ourselves – bad because the roads were jammed. I didn't know if it was some wreck or if there was a really good sale I was missing out on, but it was driving me insane! I told Grant to take the next turn, and even though he complained that it would take us in the opposite direction that we needed to go, he went without question. Soon enough we came upon a small park that was completely empty. There weren't any other roads except the one behind us. When Grant stopped the car for a second, I immediately got out and started walking to stretch my legs. The boys must've wanted to do the same because I heard the sound of two car doors slamming.

It wasn't the only sound I heard. Behind us two men were walking toward us laughing their heads off. They were both short and for some reason they reminded me of monkeys. I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between them if not for one of them being more muscular. As if I had just called him he looked at me.

"Hey! You got to hear this joke – it's hilarious!" He said, still laughing. He didn't give us time to decide if we wanted to hear it or not. "Okay, so a string walks into a bar and orders a beer. The bartender says, 'I'm sorry, but we don't serve strings here.' The string goes back to his table. He ties himself in a knot and messes up the top of his hair. He walks back up to the bar and orders a beer. The bartender squints at him and says, 'Hey, aren't you a string?' The string says back, 'Nope, I'm a frayed knot.'"

The two men started laughing at again. I didn't really get how the joke was funny, but their laughter was contagious. Soon enough the five of us were laughing so hard we had tears in our eyes. I don't know how long it lasted but when we were finally able to compose ourselves, they said their goodbyes and left. We were about to follow their lead too when I noticed something different about Nico.

"Nico," I started slowly, "Where's your sword?" He looked at me in confusion, quickly reaching to his side where he always carried it. His face quickly turned to one of surprise, and Grant and I decided to check for our weapons, too. My dagger! It was gone! Grant was looking toward the area the men disappeared off to with a blank expression. I guessed he was trying to put all the pieces together. And Nico…I thought he was scary enough _with _the sword, but now he looked absolutely murderous.

We ran after them, but they were nowhere in sight! How could they move so fast? It was dusk when we couldn't search any more. All I knew was that we were in some back alley, the rest of me was too angry to notice anything else. I had _just_ gotten that dagger! I decided to vent it on the walls.

"Passalos and Akmon, the Cercopes." Nico growled. "It has to be. Those damn thieves are worse tricksters than children of Hermes."

"I don't care who they are! I'm going to wring their necks when I find them." I yelled. Both of the boys looked at me in surprise. I didn't often lose my cool like this. It only happened once since I got to camp and neither of them were there to see it.

The two of them explained, as we started walking again, that Hercules had once captured them, but let them go when they told him some joke. I didn't really pay attention. We didn't need to look much farther for Passalos and Akmon, they cruised by – completely oblivious to us – in Grant's own car. Now Grant was the one who was steaming.

"My car…" he seemed beyond sentences, "they…" He regained his ability to speak properly and resorted to call them names I'd rather not repeat as we ran after them. For once I was glad for the traffic jam. Eventually we lost them again after they turned a corner into a much-less-crowded area. However, it wasn't hard to find them again – just follow the hysterical laughter.

We ended up near some warehouses (I wasn't sure if we were still in Detroit or not). Inside one of the buildings, surrounded by their loot, sat the two monkey-men playing cards. I suddenly had a great idea: why wring their necks when you can hurt their pride? I turned to my two companions.

"Hey guys, listen…"

XxXxX

"What's up!" I exclaimed loudly, breaking the Cercopes out of whatever conversation they were having. They looked at the three of us in amused surprise as we walked in.

"How did you find us?"asked the smaller of the two.

"It was pretty easy. We followed the sound of dying donkeys." They laughed again but it had an edge to it. I guess they don't like it when the joke's on them.

"If you came to get your stuff back, you're out of luck. Akmon and I aren't just going to give it to you," said the larger one, Passalos, "We aren't idiots. You'd just try to kill us."

"_Try_?" Nico scoffed. Thankfully, the twins either didn't hear him or just ignored him.

"So," I started, hoping to change the subject. Thank the gods that the Hermes cabin taught me the ways of deceit, "Speaking of killing, I bet I could absolutely destroy you both in poker." I pointed at the cards on the table. I saw the two thieves' eyes light up with the challenge. Just as I thought.

"We'll take you up on that." Akmon said.

"What do you have to bet with?" Passalos replied. He seemed to be a little doubtful now.

"Absolutely nothing. You two took everything valuable that we owned."

"I see. You want us to wager your things on the match. What if we win?" I smiled.

"We leave. Simple as that," before, Passalos looked doubtful but now they both were, "I swear." The brothers relaxed a bit. Even monsters knew the weight of that kind of oath. If they only knew….

"Alright, we accept – but only if one of you sits out. Two on two is only fair." We faked being uncomfortable about that. But we all agreed that it was only fair. Nico was the one who was left out, saying that he was never very good at the game. I almost felt sorry for the guy. We only left him out because people could forget he was in a room.

The game started. I was so happy that I had so much practice betting on M&Ms in the schoolyard when I was a kid. As we continued our game I didn't even see Nico get our weapons and into the car. Soon enough Grant had left the group and joined Nico. It was my turn. I had all four eights in my hand, but I knew it was risky letting the trick go on any longer. I hated it, but I folded. The monkey-like men started laughing like crazy. I shot up, knocking down my seat in the process.

"Now, now kid," Akmon scolded playfully, "You made a promise. Leave." I started laughing, too. That caught them so off guard, they actually stopped laughing and stared at me like I'd gone insane. At that moment the car growled to life, and started peeling out of the warehouse. I ran after it, the Cercopes right behind after a moment's hesitation, and jumped into the back. My pursuers were too slow to catch us.

Now, you might've figured out how I was able to bypass the oath. For those of you who didn't, I only promised I would leave not how I did it. I might've even worked if I was specific seeing as the river Styx was all dried up. Either way, the three of us were pulling a Cercopes, laughing our heads off as we drove out of the city.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

* * *

When Opportunity Strikes – 08 – I Meet the Cause of All Life's Problems

So after much arguing and debating and name-calling, I finally convinced Grant to let me drive. Sure I had technically lost my driver's license not long ago (long story) but in my defense none of us were supposed to be driving without a 'legal adult' in the first place, so it was moot. Plus he seemed like he was going to fall asleep at the wheel. The fact was only proven when we switched seats – as soon as he sat down he started sawing logs. Before, on the train, he was the one to stay up and Nico was the one to sleep like the dead. Now the roles were reversed.

I was nervous around him. Sure, I had spent the last few days with him on this quest and I had seen him around camp, but he still seemed so…you know…confusing, eerie, intimidating. I didn't know if that was a normal thing for children of Hades or not. This was the first time I had spent with him without anyone listening or him trying to chop my head off. Part of me wanted to strike up a conversation to ease the tension but I didn't know where to start. What was a good conversation-starter for a son of Hades? _Hey, if we ever fix this mess about the Styx, can you get an autograph for me from Jimi Hendrix? _I didn't have to worry about what to say much longer.

"What was your mother like?" That caught me by surprise. His eyes were far away. I had never seen him look so down.

"My foster mom or –"

"Your real mom." The question threw me. It took me a few seconds to go through my memories of her before I answered.

"She was stubborn to a fault. Whenever she made a decision she'd stick to it. A lot of those decisions were risks, too. Sometimes they'd work out for her, sometimes they didn't and when that happened she would always roll with the punches and keep on moving. She wasn't afraid to speak her mind and be criticized about it. But she was always kind and sympathetic, too. When someone needed her she would be there no questions asked and she would take the time to listen. She got hit with a stray bullet six years ago in a cross-fire between police and some group of criminals. She died a few days later." Nico was quiet. I however was starting to sob.

"I can't remember her." He finally stated.

"Your mother?" He nodded. Gods, how did he_ stand_ it? My mother meant everything to me. When I forgot one little thing about her I would go ballistic!

"All I know of her comes from a vision of the time she died and what little my father's told me about her." All was silent for the next quarter of a mile.

"Why did you tell me?"

"Because I needed someone who could relate to what I'm going through." We didn't talk after that.

XxXxX

By the time we reached the next state line, I was the only one left awake, the car was running low on gas, and I was starving. I was more than eager to stop at the next gas station I saw. After filling up the tank I walked into the little shop to pay for the gas and a few snacks. I bought extra for the rest of the trip. As I walked back to the car, I noticed a woman leaning against my door. She was looking at me, waiting. I shifted my cache to my other hand and rested the unoccupied one on the hilt of my dagger.

The woman had golden curls flowing down to her shoulder blade. Her eyes were a brilliant shade of blue that kind of reminded me of Thalia's, though how I could remember them from all those months ago, I didn't know. She was short and her voice was almost child-like as she addressed me.

"Jade Egilhard, daughter of Caerus," I gripped my dagger and prepared for a fight. She grinned, "There's no need, I'm only here to tal –"

"Who are you?" She glared at me, visibly annoyed for a second before she composed herself.

"My name is Ate, goddess of ruin." Now I was really on edge. I had taken to thinking about the prophecy whenever I had free time. Just now the first line came back to me _Ruin has brought a goddess's fall._ If Ate was the goddess of ruin, did this mean that she was the one who dried up Styx's river? The goddess wasn't even fazed by my hostile expression. She simply brushed a speck of dirt off her red t-shirt. "There's no need to be difficult. I didn't do anything to Styx. She and I are good friends!"

"Then who did?" I tried not to seem shaken that she knew exactly what I was thinking about.

"My son," _What?_ I was lost for words. But part of me realized that this could also fit the line in the prophecy. "His name is Dunstan Porcher. You've been told about the last titan war, yes?"

"He," I started slowly, "was one of the half-bloods who joined Kronos, wasn't he?"

She nodded sadly, "Most demigods who lived through the ordeal stopped following him after that. But some, like Dunstan, just became even more fixated on serving him." She looked at me, seeming helpless. "Please, Jade. You may be able to help him change his mind. At the least you might make him think about his choices. He's the only child I have in the world and I can't bear the thought of him working blindly for monsters like the titans."

Okay, this was getting weird. This was the second time a goddess asked me to do something for her. Surely they don't need to rely on me _that _much!

"Gods and goddesses can't directly interfere," Great! She was reading my mind again, "That's why we need demigods like you to help us out."

"Gee, just what I wanted to hear. I'm being used." Ate shook her head.

"You can't see the impact you half-bloods have on us. When you do something for us we become indebted to you, we're jealous of you, most of the time we're suckers for our own children and we're afraid to admit it all because we're so full of pride!"

I laughed, "Jealous? Why would someone with so much power be jealous of a teenage girl who's risking her neck every five seconds?"

"Because you're free to do what you want," I stopped laughing, "We're bound by rules and limitations and you aren't. A few of us are even a little afraid you because of that." I stared at her. She was joking right? She sighed, "I can tell you where he is but not what he's doing. Go to Knapp's Castle in Santa Barbara."

I blinked. Didn't this kind of count as direct influence? But before I could even ask if it was, she was gone. I looked around a bit, but she was nowhere in sight. Chiron was right, she doesn't hang around for very long. I got into the car and started driving again, putting the bags in the back with Grant. I wasn't very hungry anymore.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

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When Opportunity Strikes – 09 – On the Road Again

It was about midday when Grant made me relinquish the car. I didn't complain because it _was_ his car no matter how much I wanted it. Plus I kind of made him mad when I woke him up and I didn't want to get too far on his bad side. If you're wondering, I fell asleep and my head hit the car horn like something out of a movie.

Anyway, there wasn't much to look at – just fields and a long road leading into the horizon, the occasional cow, too. Nico had miraculously slept through the entire car horn incident and Grant was ignoring me, so I started reflecting on the prophecy again. '_Ruin has brought a goddess's fall,' _That meant Dunstan finding a way to dry the river Styx, making the goddess Styx weak. '_According to plans of a new cabal.' _Ate did say that he was still serving the titans. _'Fight against brothers without raising a blade,'_ That was an easy one – the Cercopes. The rest wasn't so easy, so I figured they haven't happened yet.

_'Then face stone warriors in a mountain's shade.'_ There were about a million movies that showed statues coming to life. Maybe it was something along those lines? There were also tons of mountains in the U.S., not including the entire world. _'Destruction must be faced by favor sincere,'_ I could only guess that meant someone was going to be destroyed trying to keep an IOU. _'In order to save the one whom gods fear.'_ That was what I was stumped on. Why would we want to save someone the gods were afraid of? _'Another decision awaits in turn.'_ That was simple enough, but I figured the actual decision would be hard. _'Three shall go, but two shall return.'_ That only strengthened my idea that someone was going to die.

I really didn't want Grant to be any angrier than he was at me, but he needed to know about my talk with the goddess last night.

"Grant?" He didn't start yelling again, so I kept going, "Last night I pulled over to get some food and gas, but when I returned to the car, Ate was waiting for me." The car jerked to a stop, throwing Nico out of the backseat. That _had_ to wake him up.

"You met Ate?" Grant yelled.

"What?" Nico exclaimed.

"Why didn't you tell us before, Jade?"

"Maybe if you actually let me talk without screaming at me…All I did was fall asleep on the wheel. Yeah it was dangerous but that's nothing compared to all the monsters going for our throats! You're acting like a complete bastard, Grant!" He flinched and looked away from me. I sighed, "It's not her that's dried up the Styx – it's her son. All I know is that he's doing something at Knapp's Castle."

"That's not too far from Los Angeles." Nico stated, "About an hour's drive if you ignore the speed limit." Grant started driving again, not saying a word.

XxXxX

"Well, when you start acting like a human being again, you let me know. Okay?" A little while ago I had woken up from a short nap, Grant was still driving, and he was still acting like I wasn't there. I laid back down, trying to go to sleep. Right when I was about to fall into that oh-so-needed slumber, Grant spoke.

"I'm sorry, Jade." Well he still wasn't looking at me, but at least he was talking.

"About time. Forgiven."

"It's just been a long day. When you woke me up, I was having a dream. It came from my grandmother."

"Grandmother?" Could he hear the sarcasm in my voice?

"Styx."

"Huh?" Yet another dumb moment to add to the list.

"My mother, Bia, is her daughter. That makes her my grandmother."

"Oh. Was it important?"

"I…don't know. It wasn't very clear. But still….I guess I just overreacted." I nodded. Then something occurred to me.

"Hey! Styx is your grandmother and her river is in Nico's dad's realm. Obviously this is personal for the both of you. Why did you pick me to go with you? I barely had any training. I could have just messed everything up."

"You had a dream, too, remember? Styx asked for your help personally." Naturally, I had completely forgotten about that. It seemed so far away now. "Plus, your father isn't just the god of opportunity, he's also the god of luck and favorable moments. You're a good luck charm. You also looked like the type of person who worked well under pressure. You'd learn faster outside of camp."

"So what do you think about the prophecy?"

"I try not to. Prophecies always have more than one meaning and most of the time once they happen it's something you never even thought of."

"I see your point. But I want to know what you think about the line _'in order to save the one whom gods fear.'_"

"That's actually an easy one. That's Styx."

"No offense to her, but why would the gods be afraid of her? She's a minor goddess."

"It all goes back to the first titan war. She was the first to side with Zeus when he gave the option. So he rewarded her by making her river the agent of a binding oath. That's why they fear her – she makes sure they keep their promises. If they don't, she gets back at them with a vengeance."

"Right. Remind me to never make a promise I can't keep."


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

* * *

When Opportunity Strikes – 10 – Attack of the Human Spiders

Ah, the Rockies. They reminded me of the time I went to this one national park. Beautiful scenery, near impossible to traverse comfortably, and crawling with insects. I never liked insects, they always seemed to go after me instead of everyone else (especially when annoying little brothers pour Kool Aid on you).

I was undoubtedly cranky. I hadn't had a decent meal since we left the Nelsen's house, the best sleep I could get was a few hours in the back of a compact, and the guys tended to treat me like I didn't know the difference between an elephant and a hand grenade. I was starting to wonder if the boys knew the difference between an angry Jade Egilhard and a daughter of Ares at 'that time of the month' (trick question by the way, there is no difference). Artemis's offer to become a hunter was looking pretty good right now. But that's getting off topic. I wasn't in the best of moods and any more pressure would make me snap. Let's leave it at that, shall we?

We were driving through Colorado, the mountains looked like they were trying to swallow us whole. By now I had seen enough that I wouldn't be surprised if it actually happened. Ironically I was thinking about Grant saying I was lucky when smoke started leaking from under the hood of the car.

"Aw, no, no, no, NO!" Grant groaned. The car slowed to a stop, and he jumped out, opened the hood and out billowed tons of smoke. He hissed when he burned his hand.

"Grant, you know you're not supposed to touch the engine while it's still hot, right?" Nico and I got out as he looked around the hood. We both laughed a little at the sight of his antics – looks like the car's not the only thing that lost its cool.

"Not funny," Grant scowled, "We'll have to wait until it cools off. Until then, what do we do?"

"I don't know about you guys, but I need to move. I'm going for a little walk."

"Not too far Jade."

"I know! I'll keep within viewing distance of the road." I didn't have to walk far before turning back. Just two or three steps towards the tree line and out jumped the largest monster I'd ever seen. Remember when I said I didn't like insects because they seem drawn to me? I guess spider-men were, too, and I'm not talking about the comic book kind. This guy was a good two feet taller than me and it had six arms. Six! I suddenly had a flashback to my literacy class at school, the time we were reading the Greek stories. One of the first was about Jason and the Argonauts and I remembered the time they went to this one mountain and met something along the lines of this guy. I couldn't remember what they were called though and I didn't have time to think about it as it made a grab for me.

I rolled to my left and had to dodge again. Apparently it brought its buddies with him. By that time, the boys noticed the new company and joined in the fight.

I wasn't in the mood to get bear-hugged, so I started off with disarming the giants. In one swift movement I had unsheathed my dagger and sliced off the hand of one of the monsters, following with a stab. I was aiming for the heart, but I got the side.

All I did was make it angry. It rushed me but I dodged again, stabbing it in the back. The results were better. I turned in time to see the monster that swatted me. I sailed right over toward Grant and proceeded to help him decapitate his own enemy once I got my bearings.

"Thanks!"

"Yep!"

I was running on pure instinct. All that existed was a blade and an opponent. Slash. Stab. Kick. Punch. It was all a rush. I wasn't surprised when I started to laugh, but I was a little unnerved. That wasn't like me.

Then I was surrounded: four giants on all sides. Time froze.

It was just like last the time when I was training with Cassidy. My head was filled with all the options I had to escape. There weren't many, but there was one that looked promising. If I could just pull it off….

I lunged at one of the monsters, surprising it enough to stab it in the heart. I jumped off of him while he was disintegrating, flipped through the air and dragged my dagger down the back of another. The other two rushed me, but I whirled and sliced through both cleanly.

Footsteps behind me. I turned and Nico parried my attack. Grant was right beside him. I could see more of the monsters coming out of the woods – too many to fight. The next thing I knew, a hand was on my shoulder and I was rushing through nothingness.

XxXxX

As soon as the world disappeared, it reappeared. I was confused. Where was I? What happened to the monsters?

_THUD_. I looked to my left and saw that Nico had collapsed. I panicked. He hadn't seemed injured back at the pass. I started shaking him.

"Nico? Nico!"

"Jade, he's fine. Let him sleep it off." Grant stated. He was worn out. Thankfully I didn't see any injuries on him either. I took in my surroundings. We were in what looked to be an old hotel. The walls were yellow with age and the floorboards were warped and creaked with the slightest movement. I could hear traffic in the distance. This definitely wasn't the mountain pass we were in. I thought back to camp, when Nico had first explained his worry of not being able to contact the Underworld.

"Did he just shadow-travel us?"

"Yeah. Pretty cool, huh?"

"Awesome, but why didn't he just do it before-hand? We could have gotten here a lot quicker.

"Jade, you can probably drop a bomb and he wouldn't wake up to it. Who knows how long he'll be out? And until recently, we didn't know exactly where we were going. It wouldn't have helped." He had a point.

By then my adrenaline high was wearing down.

"Grant? Something weird happened during the battle –"

"You mean besides you going on a rampage?"

"Yea – What? Did I really do so much damage?" I thought maybe I killed about six or seven of the Gegenees (Ha! I remembered!), but they probably killed just as many.

"You really did. They kept coming and you kept cutting them down. I knew it. You're doing ten times better than how you were doing at camp. By the way, where did you learn how to do that last move?" And my thoughts returned to the question I was going to ask.

"Good question. Once I noticed I was surrounded, time just froze. _I_ did too, but it was like all of the choices I could make rushed through my head at once. I just picked one and followed through on it."

He looked thoughtful, "I never noticed. Has it happened before?" Doctor-mode again.

"Yeah, actually…when I was training with your sister. But I didn't choose one of the options and I completely messed up." He stared at me for a few moments.

"Congratulations, Jade. You've unlocked your first demigod power." Woah, I had powers?

"Nice. How do I control it?"

"You may not be able to." _What?_ "Powers are hard to pin down and classify. Some people think that extra strength or skill is a power and some think it's just a normal genetic thing. I think powers are only powers when they're triggered by something – like a certain emotion, being in a certain state, or willing it to work. Your power may only work when you're in danger."

"That makes sense. So do _you_ have any powers?"

"By my standards, no. Sure I'm good with every weapon I pick up, but that's just something that's normal for a child of Bia, it isn't triggered."

He crossed his arms and looked out the window. I couldn't stop myself from staring at him because even after battle he looked amazing. The setting sun was reflecting in his eyes. The draft messed with his hair. I was sure that if he wasn't here, the room would look much sadder and lonely.

He turned back to face me and I looked down before I was caught. It looked like he was trying to say something.

"I'm going to look for supplies. Be careful," he tossed me a Golden Drachma, "IM if you need anything. I won't be far." I don't know what I was expecting to hear, but that wasn't it. Self-fulfilling prophecy strikes again…the room got colder as he left.

I didn't like the fact that I couldn't go anywhere. Especially since all the company I had was a dead-tired son of Hades. I caught myself thinking about home – a delayed regret for deciding to leave. How would they react to find that I had been fighting monsters and meeting gods. How would they take to me being the biological daughter of one?

Of course I'd never know if I didn't live through the week. What had happened back there? I know it's good to not be afraid of a fight, but _enjoying_ it? Even now the urge to get into another battle was tempting. Maybe this was what the prophecy meant by '_Another decision awaits in turn'_? Maybe I had to decide if I was going to follow through on this impulse or not. Would I cause my own downfall?


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

* * *

When Opportunity Strikes – 11 – We Meet the Cause of All Death's Problems

Grant was right. It _did _take a while for Nico to wake up. It would have been quicker to drive…although by now Grant's car had been pulverized. I learned that we were, in fact, in Santa Barbara – Nico had mentioned shadow traveling can be a bit finicky when it comes to dropping you off in the right place.

I was surprised we hadn't been attacked by now – we weren't far from monster central. I was almost disappointed by that fact. Babysitting Nico for the last day put me a step short of insane. I was thankful when he finally woke up. Now we could go and stop Dunstan. I didn't know what he was planning exactly, but I wasn't too keen on seeing it come to completion.

We had no car, so we had to hike up to Knapp's Castle. I had no idea what to expect so I reviewed my training just in case. I wished I had remembered to bring my bow….It was too late to worry about that now.

Grant slowed down to match my pace. "Here comes the big one. How're you holding up?"

"I'm holding. How are you two able to cope so easily?" I said in a shaky voice - though I didn't know if it was because of fright or excitement.

"We've faced harder things," Nico said, eavesdropping again I see, "Wars, titans, bad prophecies, you name it."

"Well, we have one of those down so let's try to avoid the other two 'kay?"

"Sounds like a plan," Grant laughed, "But not to rain on your parade or anything…how will you take it if we do have more titans and wars to deal with?"

"Then gods help me 'cause I sure can't help myself."

XxXxX

The walk wasn't as long as I'd expected but it was night when we finally got there. I also thought we'd run into some security but the path was completely, suspiciously clear. The castle itself, though, was another matter. It was surrounded by monsters. There was no mistaking that something was going down.  
The three of us moved into the shadows. Slowly, we worked our way closer to get a better look. At some point we had split up so it was less likely that the monsters would be able to zone in on us. Once or twice I had a close call with a Laestrygonian giant, but I avoided being caught. Soon enough I could see Dunstan…and two other people.

Both were heads taller than the demigod next to them. I couldn't see them very clearly from this angle. What I could see was that one was wearing a helmet with horns on it and one was just plain_ huge_! The big one was leaning against something, gripping it tight, like he was trying not to use it against the boy in their midst – so I figured that something was a weapon (not that he seemed to need it). The other was shooting the guy looks of slight disapproval but it was obvious that he wanted to strangle Dunstan too.

I still couldn't hear what they were saying though, so I snuck a little closer.

"…need more…together…pieces." The guy with the horns said.

"…easy problem…fix….kill…." The bigger one replied. I wasn't liking this train of thought. Apparently, neither did Dunstan.

"...can't…attention…." They got a little quieter after that. I wished I could hear more. Unfortunately, all I heard next was myself gasping in surprise and the triumphant laugh of the monster that had captured me.

Before I could react the giant had taken my dagger and folded my arms behind me. I struggled for a bit, but stopped as he started to drag me. I wasn't giving up or anything, I was just conserving my energy. Plus I might be able to get him to let down his guard. Though escape seemed a little less likely when he pushed me toward the last three people I wanted to meet. They turned when we entered and I could see them all too clearly now.

The big one smiled, "It's about time something happened. I was getting bored." Unfortunately, I could also see the giant battleaxe he was leaning on.

"Calm down Perses," _Purses?_ "She could be useful." It was the guy with the horn helmet. Dunstan stepped forward.

"What's your name?" I didn't respond. "Alright then, I'll give you two options: you can either choose to help us or you can choose to be a martyr. Either way, you're helping us." Wasn't very tactful, was he? I spat at him.

I expected them to get angry. Only two of them weren't.

"This one has spirit. She'll be very useful in the ritual." Ritual? What ritual? He nodded to the demigod in front of me. The monster that held me threw Dunstan my own knife. He unsheathed it.

"A nice blade," I didn't care what he thought. No one handled my dagger but me. He took it in his hand (holding it the wrong way, the idiot) and made to stab me.

He didn't get very far because just then, a ton of monster dust blew into the area, followed by none other than Grant himself. He charged Dunstan, knocking him back into the opposite wall next to a large, highly decorated jar I hadn't seen before. He caught my dagger and threw it to me, and I killed the Laistrygonian holding me. A second later Nico came in, glaring at Grant. So much for stealth. Now, it was time to fight.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

* * *

When Opportunity Strikes – 12 – Facing Down Destruction

Grant charged Dunstan again and Nico and I went after the (less imposing) guy with the horns, who was trying to escape. He pulled a sword out of nowhere, and started defending himself from our double-team. In no time we were knocked back.

"Who _is_ this guy?" I asked.

"Krios, the titan of constellations. The other guy is his son, Perses, the titan of destruction."

"Oh, wonderful!" I replied sarcastically. I blame Grant for jinxing us. Perses wasn't in combat, but he wasn't trying to get away either. He probably would have enjoyed it, but he couldn't join in himself because of that old law. Thank gods.

Turning my attention back to the fight, I had just enough time to block an incoming attack. I had never felt an attack that strong before. But I held and had left just enough room for Nico to get a blow in…if the titan hadn't seen it coming.

He dodged and made another swing which we barely avoided.

Nico struck as I made my way behind him. I don't know how he did it, but he parried both of us. So he could handle two of us, but what about…

"Grant!" I yelled. That was all it took to get the point across. It was now three on one. Grant was just as skilled at parrying attacks from all sides as Krios. While he struck and countered the titan, he did the same to Dunstan.

Slash, parry, stab, block. We kept fighting, he kept countering. Then by some move I didn't see, I was knocked back again.

Getting up, I saw Perses walking away. I wasn't the only one.

"Jade, go!" One of the boys said. I didn't hesitate to follow orders. I ran straight for the retreating titan. I jumped and aimed a stab at his back. At the last possible second, he swung around to counter. My dagger kept the attack from slicing me in half but I probably had a concussion from the impact of the nearest solid object.

In case you didn't know: Human-Sized Battleaxe + Lightning Reflexes = "Oh-crap-what-have-I-gotten-myself-into?"

The titan laughed in his deep voice, "Finally! You don't know how long I've waited for a fight. I thank you for your foolishness half-blood!"

I bit back a sarcastic remark. I didn't think it would be wise to get him angry.

The next thing I knew, I was being pushed back by another blow. And another. And another. I never had a chance to do anything but defend myself - and barely even that!

He swung and I jumped back. He swung down and I blocked.

What happened next was the thing I was dreading most: my wrist caved in to the pressure, but just because I didn't want that to happen, didn't mean I didn't expect it.

Quickly, I switched my dagger from my right hand to my left, and raised it just in time to block yet another attack. It felt awkward, but I didn't think much about it when I saw Perses's face. He looked confused and he was studying me like I was some puzzle.

Then his face brightened and he said, "Menoitios."

I wasn't sure what that meant. I could tell it was Greek, but I didn't recognize the word.

Then he twisted his axe and flicked me away again. I landed with a thud on the ground. He was right over me, preparing to swing down and cleave me in two.

Grant was right again - my powers _must_ trigger when I'm in danger... There was a good one: roll, vault, strike.

When the titan brought down his weapon, I rolled to the side and onto my feet. Then I jumped onto the handle and as he tried to knock me off, I vaulted right over his shoulder and slashed at him. The move would've worked, but it was blocked by some sort of chain. I landed with my back turned to him which turned out to be a big mistake. He grunted in pain and then started laughing. I turned around.

_WOOSH!_

I yelled as I fell back and clutched my stomach, which he had just cut open. I've seen people live through worse, but it wouldn't matter how small the injury was, I wasn't going to live through the next five seconds if a miracle didn't happen.

I was never happier to be wrong. Grant had said I was lucky, but I never believed him until now. Perses's finishing blow was blocked by a black sword of stygian iron. My first thought was that Nico had saved me, but it wasn't him. It was the goddess Styx!

She looked weaker than before, but it didn't affect her fighting skill. She and the titan were attacking so fast they were a blur – though that may have been because I was losing blood and my consciousness. While the two immortals fought against each other, I was fighting against myself. Styx fought with a vengeance, but I could tell she wasn't going to last long.

Next to my hand, I saw a glint. It was the chain I had sliced off of Perses. It was a locket. I thought it was funny that a titan would have this kind of thing until I saw the name engraved on it. _Eurybia_. From the dark corner of my mind I pulled out a mythology lesson from camp. Eurybia was the titan of the mastery of the seas.

Wait, could this mean…?

I picked up the locket which was heavier than it should have been. I faced it toward the battle in front of me. Carefully, I opened the floodgates. Literally.

Black water rushed out of the tiny object and straight into the battle. Two things happened. One: Styx seemed to get increasingly stronger. Two: Perses started howling in pain. Then the water started soaking into the ground, taking the titan of destruction and my consciousness with it.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

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When Opportunity Strikes – 13 – Home

I woke up I was at my foster parent's house. Was everything a dream? I must have sat up too quickly because I got dizzy. Someone was there to steady me. It was Grant! So it wasn't a dream.

"Good, I was about to think you were in a coma."

"Keep talking like that and I'll put _you_ into one." I threatened halfheartedly. He smiled faintly. He looked dead on his feet. Did he stay awake the entire time I was out of it?

"You've been asleep for an entire day. You were lucky that Styx was there to heal you or it would've been longer." Then Nico walked into the living room.

"Finally," he said relieved, "Styx wants you. By the way, your foster mom is a really good cook."

I noticed he had a bowl of her tomato and red bell pepper soup. My stomach growled. His eyes narrowed.

"No you don't," he said, "This is mine. Get your own." I didn't argue. I walked to the kitchen and saw Todd and Karlee Salvin sitting at the kitchen table with none other than the goddess who saved me herself.

When my foster mother saw me, her eyes lit up and she raced over to hug me, "Jade!"

I had just realized how much I really missed her. I started crying. That's when Todd decided to speak up, "Is it true then?"

"Is what true?" I asked, though I had a feeling I knew what he meant.

"About monsters and gods and you being a –" he couldn't complete the sentence.

"Demigod?" I finished for him, "Yeah it is."

"So I'm not crazy?" That caught me by surprise. I looked to Styx to get an explanation.

"Your foster father can see past the Mist, Jade. Some mortals have the ability to do that. Most don't understand it, though." So he's been seeing monsters all of his life? Wow. I thought I had it bad.

"So you've told them everything?" I asked the goddess. She nodded.

"But that's not what I wanted to tell you," She looked at me with sympathetic eyes, "Jade, you've been gone for so long, you're considered dead." I could have told her that, "You won't be able to stay here."

"What?" My voice was small. Sure it was still summer, but when school started up again I would be able to come back, right?

"You'll have to stay at camp from now on. Maybe go to a school somewhere in New York."

"But, this is my home! I can't just pick up everything and leave!"

"You've done it once already." She pointed out. I flinched. That one hurt, but it was true. Styx got up and walked out of the room sending a look to Karlee. I stared at my foster mother in disbelief.

"Mom. Please don't." I begged.

"She's right honey. You belong at that camp. And you suddenly coming back from the dead won't do you any good. Besides, it would put your brothers in danger too if monsters decide to attack." She sounded like she was trying to convince herself. She hated this just as much as I did. I could see Todd in the corner trying to keep himself composed. He wasn't doing a very good job.

I knew she was right, but I was finding it hard to accept. But no matter how many times I tried to deny it, I knew it was futile.

"But," Todd started and I started to hope, "We know the truth about you now, so maybe you could visit once in a while." I nodded, but my hope was gone. I knew it was impossible. Once I left here, I doubted I could ever come back.

XxXxX

The next few minutes I started to pack up some of my personal belongings (fortunately Hunter slept very heavily). I noticed through a window that Nico was outside, looking thoughtful – almost regretful. Once I was finished packing I went to him.

"Nico? What are you doing out here?" He looked at me.

"Just…thinking."

"Don't we all?" He shrugged.

"I'm sorry. About you having to leave here for good I mean." I was quiet for a few seconds.

"It's not your fault. The day I 'disappeared' I was attacked by a monster. The hunters of Artemis saved me," he scowled, I didn't know why, but I didn't think it was a good idea to ask, "She gave me the choice of coming back here, but I chose to go to camp. I stayed there so long, now I'm a dead girl. It's my fault I have to stay away." Again it was silent.

"Did you know I'm technically seventy-something years old?"

"Huh?" Did I hear him right?

"Yeah. It's a long story. But that's not the point. I know what it's like to not have a home outside of camp. Well, there's always the underworld but that's different." It was nice to have someone who could relate to what I'm going through, to confide in. He didn't have a mortal family to go to and I couldn't return to mine. We both lost our mothers. I wondered what else we had in common.

"So when are we leaving?" I asked, changing the subject.

"You mean, 'When are you and Grant leaving?'"

"You're not coming back to camp?"

"I will, just not right now. Styx and I are going to the underworld. There's a lot that needs to be fixed. She's sending the locket to Poseidon – figures he would be the best choice to keep that magic item from the titan's hands."

"Oh. By the way, I never asked. What happened after I passed out?"

"The river returned to the underworld, dragging Perses with it," He looked angry, "But Krios and Dunstan got away." I sighed in frustration. So the battle wasn't over yet. Guess my good luck ran out. Grant came out, followed by Styx. It was time to go. With barely a wave of her hand, she cast a shadow over myself and Grant and we were soon being hurled through them.

I committed the last image of my foster parents to memory.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I do own Jade, Grant, and any other characters that you don't recognize from the series, as well as the story plot.**

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When Opportunity Strikes – 14 – Birthday

Returning to camp was uneventful. As soon as we passed through the borders of camp, I was greeted by none other than Lucy, who decided to plow straight into me like the first time we met. Again, like the first time we met, she started spouting out questions left and right.

"You've been gone so long! Where did you go? What did you do? Did you fight any monsters? Oh, I left you some Jolly Ranchers." After I tried to answer her many questions I told her that Grant and I had to talk to Chiron. She let me go grudgingly and decided to go and inform the rest of the camp that we were back.

As we walked into the Big House, we saw Chiron in his wheelchair. He looked up as we came in and he smiled. I could tell that that was the first since we left.

"Grant! Jade! You're back! I take it the quest went well? Wait, where's Nico?"

"He went to go help out in the underworld." Grant stated. He then continued to relay the whole quest to the centaur.

XxXxX

"So the titans are still at large. I was afraid of that. It's sad to hear that some demigods are still on their side." He was grief-stricken, but he didn't seem surprised. I felt sorry for him. He treated all of the campers like they were his own and then some go and turn against him. He changed the subject. "You should go to your fellow campers. I'm sure they will want to know all about the quest before dinner."

I felt bad about leaving him alone, but I didn't argue. Lucy, the little gossiper, had told just about everyone in the camp that we were back. We were half way to the cabins when we were mauled by most of the campers. While we answered questions, we gradually moved toward the dining pavilion. At which point Mr. D welcomed back 'Jane' and 'Trent' then promptly told us to shut up and eat.

When the excitement about the quest died down everyone moved toward the amphitheatre for the sing-a-long. Everyone except me, that is. I was still a little down. By the time I realized where I was going, I was already laying on the roof of cabin number fourty-two – the Caerus cabin.

"It's a beautiful night. Why aren't you celebrating?" Came a voice to the left of me. He had brown eyes and single lock of dark blond hair. He didn't look much older than me, but I knew that wasn't the case.

"Dad." It wasn't a question. Somehow I knew this man as well as I knew myself. Not to mention Kyle looked exactly like him. He smiled.

"You know, I've been called 'father' and 'sir' but this is the first time anyone's referred to me as 'dad'. I like it. But you never answered my question. Why aren't you at the party?"

"I have a lot on my mind." I answered truthfully.

"Mm…the son of Ate and your foster family, I'm guessing." How did he know that? "Well, I can't help you with the Salvins, but I _will_ make sure that they have what they need. It's the least I could do for keeping you safe."

The news almost made me start crying again. They deserved it and more. Having to take care of four kids really put a toll on them.

"I'm sorry to say that I can't help you much when it comes to that Dunstan boy either," he said, "But I can tell you this: it's only beginning. Things will only get more challenging. So try to keep that temper of yours in check."

"That's comforting." I stated sarcastically. I couldn't deny that I had a bad temper when I got frustrated or desperate. He laughed.

"You're just like Elaine." That was the first time I'd been compared to my mother in years. I liked hearing that I was like her, "Oh, I nearly forgot. Happy birthday! Sorry, I didn't have time to wrap it."

I was surprised, not because I received a present from a god but because I had completely forgotten that it was my birthday. June 17th. I sat up and looked at what he had given me. It was a pair of reading glasses.

"Umm…thanks dad, but my vision is twenty-twenty."

"I know, but these aren't ordinary glasses. When you look through them, you'll see a trail. It'll lead you to wherever you need to go."

I was so shocked but I didn't want to seem rude so I said another quick, "Thank you." At the same time he smiled, I heard a knock on the cabin door. I turned my head to look in that direction for a second, but when I looked back to my father, he was already gone. I huffed. Here _I_ was worried about being rude. I heard the knocking again.

"Jade?" Grant. I leaned over the edge of the porch roof to look at him.

"Yeah?" I giggled at his startled expression.

"What are you doing up there?"

"Apparently talking to the wall…or the roof in my case," I climbed off the cabin and landed in front of him, "So what did you need?"

"A little gnat told me today was your birthday," _Lucy_. "So I decided to get you a present." He held up my gift and my giggling turned into near-hysterical laughter. It was a carton of Dr. Pepper.

"Thanks!" I said once I got control of myself.

"I did owe you." He replied as he handed it to me, "Well, then, goodnight."

He started to leave, but then he stopped. No, it wasn't just him that stopped, everything did. My power was triggered! But I thought it was only if I was in danger. Then I saw my options. One: stay here and be lonely. Two: follow Grant. A second birthday present?

"Hey, Grant! Wait!" He stopped and looked at me curiously, "Don't get me wrong, I can guzzle down my fair share of cokes, but this is _way_ too many for just me."

"Cokes?"

"I'm from the south, remember? I call all soft drinks cokes. Anyway, care to share?"

He smiled brighter than I'd ever seen him smile before, "Yeah, I'd like that."

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**This completes the first part of Jade's adventures. Keep an eye out for **_**When Luck is All You Have**_**, the sequel to **_**When Opportunity Strikes**_**. Until then, I will be uploading two one-shots over the course of the next two Saturdays: **_**Killing Over Shoes or Lack Thereof**_** and**_** Alarm Clock Blowout**_**.**

**I'd like to thank everyone who read my story. And a special thanks for those that reviewed: Mythical Words, Elmethea, alexandriarulzforeva, Maerad-of-Pellinor28, Code Purple, IsisRoxannas, AnyOrdinaryGirl, storiesfortheeasilyamused, I love my knght in red, MegartXD, AutumnKhaos, xxXPercabeth4evaXxx, Lock Jay, MyNameIsNot, A Silver Ghost, Simple Chaos**

**Until next time,**

**OfMusicandMayhem**


	15. Coming Soon

**Coming Soon…**

At face value, nothing looked different. Then the crowd parted for a man. Every instinct I had told me he was a monster, but when I tried to look past the Mist, the only thing I accomplished was to make my vision fuzzy. It was about then that I inevitably woke up.

And so I did. I was back in the Camp's arena, or what was left of it. And as Chiron and the campers came to see what had happened, I was in the middle of it all…

_A hero alone shall take the stride._

_Another's will shall they abide._

_South one leads, one follows blind_

_With lying words whispered in mind._

_Two shall search and one shall find._

_The liar's face shall be defined._

_With loss of friend and two held dear,_

_A hero meets a fate severe._

…**Jade's story continues on 8/13/2011.**


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